Variable-speed gear.



H. D. WILLIAMS.

VARIABLE' SPEED GEAR. APPLICATION FILEDJULY zo, 190e.

Patented June 15, 1909.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

H. D. WILLIAMS.

VARIABLE SPEED GEAR. APPLICATION FILED JULY Z0, 1906,

925,148, I I Patented Jime15,19o9.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

H. D. WILLIAMS.

VARIABLE SPEED GEAR. v APPLICATION FILED JULY 20, 1.908. 925,148, Patented June 15,1909.-

// i E' i filo-dll concern." y

' Beit known that L'Hanvni? D. VIL'LrAMs-,-

HAR-Viiv` D. WILLIAMS,v or WAsIIi ,i .WATERBURY Toot- COMPANY,

LcoNNEeTIcUT- A No@ 925,148. l

vAmanLNI-'SPEEneriiuui,V

. spei aeatieriof Letters Patent.

J? unirse rn'rnnr At)nuieng.

NGTON, DISTRICT OFI COLUMBIA,ASSI*GNOR*TO THE OF WATERBURY, CONNECTICUTtA CORPORATION OF patented June 1 5, 190e.

a citizen of the'United States, andy resident'- of the-'city foffWashington, in the District yof Columbia, havel invented certain new and usefuly Improvements in yVariable,-Speed tion. u v v My invention relates to variable speed gear offtha't class in which pistons are reciprocated withina rotarycylinder barrel by their connection with a rotary 'inclined member, the reclprocatlon of the pistons operating to drive a bringing about the rotation I of a shaft `or other driven element.

The "object of my present invention is ltoI improve mechanism ofthe above-indicated' class, iii-various respects, particularly for the purpose ofy securing a more vuniform operat1on,`ifreeffrom jerks, of reducing the chances .of leakage, oflubricatingthe moving parts f the ydevice thoroughly, and yofefficiently proportioning the driven part of, the mechanlsm; relatively to the driving part. The inventionwill be'fully described hereinafter and the features of novelty pointed out in the appendedclaims.

Reference] is to behad to the accompanying drawings in which-4, y 4Figurel is partlyan elevation and partly a V longitudinal section of a variable speed gear embodying lmy improvements Fig.- 2l is i across section thereof'on line 242 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 isa detail longitudinal seetion 'ofgone of the connecting rods ;Fig, 4 is a face view @ft-he rotary cylinder barrel Fig is a face [view offlthev centralmember of the device which LI callfthe mid-plate,with parts in sec-V .tiong-flig.A 6 isa diagrammatic View showing the; ylinder barrelsI .with an arrangement yof suinif as may be4 employed ycylinders port y in.' accordance' Wit I ny yinvent-ion to secure an even driving action Figa?? illustra tesanother -expedien't'for,obtaining the saine result.; Fig.

.sniustattejse the construction, offene', "seket ring with sockets arranged at different disofA which the following yis ,a` specifica! l fluidinto' another section of the apwy ',paratus similar to the driving section, and

v v'tances froni'fthe' center, likewise for the'pul-- The mid-plate is provided on each side with a hub 2j into which are adapt-ed to prothe innerI ends of the driving shaft 5 and the driven shaftl 5a respectively.. At its .outerI end each of said shafts passes through a stuiing' box 6 containing a packing yring 7 and held in position by means of a cap 8' screwingvon the end of the shell l and preferably locked after'adjustmentb'y means of a keeper 9 engaging corrugations' ony the cap 8, andl Secured 4by a yscrew 10. On its inner end' eachof'the shafts .is provided with a Apin 11 extending transversely through it, and each. of said pins passes through vany opening in a key 12, which is beveled from the pin 11 teward both ends and is receivedwithin a longitudinal groove '14? on the hub, lta'of the cylinder barrel 1,4.

This barrel contains a number of cylinders 15 extending lengthwise ofthe shaft 5 or 5*1, and as shown in eilig.r 4, these cylinders, of

whichwiiine'are shown, may be 'arranged at' even intervals from eachother.- Each of the cylinders is provided with ya porty 16, y 1n that ,face or'end ,which fis adjacentto the 1nil-p1ate,2,.lthe said ports being smal-ler than'jt'he -I cylinders themselves, andy for' the securing ofthe, best results, Iprefer to give thesaid ports-a1` `'shape -elongatedgin the-directiongjof rotation asclearly shown in` Fig., 4,", This-figure,alsoillustrates another.

arranging the'said ports differentlyat the (the one shown at the top in Fig. 4) is the port placed centrally, and for the other cylinders the ports are shifted more or less to one side or the other. It will be observed, however, that the arrangement of the ports is the same for those cylinders which occupy the same position relative to the cylinder having the central arrangement of the port. That end surface of the barrel 14 which engages the mid-plate 2, and preferably a rib portion 2' of said-mid-plate, is an annulus considerably narrower than the barrel proper, so as to produce free spaces 17 between the mid-plate and the barrel, both on the inside and on the outside of the rib 2f. The object of this construction is to reduce the separating tendency exerted by any Huid which may escape under pressure between the barrel 14 and the mid-plate. Such fluid would exert a pressure only along the ring 2f which is of relatively small sur- `face, especially when taking into consideration lthe fact that in this r1ng are provided the mid-plate ports 2c and 2d shown in Fig. 5. These ports are elongated and are adapted to register with the cylinder orts 16 during the rotation of the barrel. referably, each o'f. the ports 2( and 2d has a radual entrance and termination, as for instance by means of V-shaped grooves 2e extending from each end of the ports 2c and 2d; thus, as each port 16 of the barrel rotates, it will first communicate with the reduced extension 2e, and gradually the size of the opening will increase to the full area of the ports 16 and similarly as theport 16 passes out of registry`with the port of the mid-plate,

a very gradual reduction of the passage Will take place, thus assisting inl preventing the shocks such as might be caused by the sudden establishing and cutting off of the communication. The barrel is normally pressed toward the mid-plate by means of a spring 5b coiled about the shaft and engaging a shoulder thereof. In orden to keep the barrel 14 connected with the shaft 5 when the machine is dismembered, I may provide'a screw-threaded collar or nut 13. A liber washer a may be laced between the adjacent ends of the sha ts 5, 5, to take up end thrust. A bushing b is preferabh 1nterposed between the mid-plate bearing and the shaft ends.

Within each of the cylinders 15 is adapted to reclprocate a piston. 18 having a 4socket adapted 'to receive a ball 20 at the end of the connecting rod 19 which has another ball 21 fer to provide a central lubricating channel 18a in the piston and a similar channel 19" in the connecting rod. `The balls 21 are received in sockets contained in a socket ring 23, and are heldin place by screwed sleeves 24. Preferably the circle formed by the sockets is of a larger diameter than that formed b I, the cylinders, so that in the ex treme inclined position of the socket ring as shown in Fig. 1 or in some other position of said ring, the connectin rods 19 may extend parallel with the sha t. In any event, when the circle of sockets is of a larger diameter than the circle of the cylinders, the' connecting rods 19 form a smaller angle with the sha t than they would otherwise. The socket ring 23 is provided with a trunnion-pin 23 extending into a suitable open ing in Vthe ring 25, which is swiveled on the shaft 5' by means of pins 30 projected from the shaft. The pins 30 extend at right angle to the trunnion 23 and to the trunnionpin 26,*projected from a tapering portion 27 set in an opening of the socket ring and provided ywith a screwthreaded extension 28 which receives a split wedge-shaped nut 29. The socket ring 23 runs on balls 31- engaging a race 32 carried by the inclined ring 33.

This ring is supported on trunnions 46 and is adjustable for the purpose of tilting the socket ring more or less relatively to the shaft 5. In order to accomplish vthis ad justment,-I may employ for instance teeth 34 on the rin 33, en ged by a scroll 35 on'a rotatab e isk 36, t e stem 37 of which passes throng' a stufiing box 39 on a nipple 19, and is provided with a hand-wheel 38. The stem may be channeled lengthwise as shown at 37, the outer end of the channel being closed by a screw 40. In order to press the scroll 35 against the teeth 34, I may employ a block 41 pressed by a spring 42 which is arranged in a' socket 1e and engaged by an adjustingscrew 43 having a head 43a; a nut 44 serves to hold the screw tight after adjustment.

The entire space inclosed by the shell sec fluid, for instance throu ing 1f. At the time of t e lilling the screw 40 is removed, so that air may esca e through the channel 37a. The oil ma he withdrawn when desired,l through ports, such as 1h, which may be closed by plugs 45.. All the'parts are thoroughly lubricated within the casing or shell, lubricating channels 2" and 1g being provided respectively at the inner ends of the shafts and near the outer ends. The two sections of the apparatus are exactly alike except that at the driven end'of the apparatus the rings 33 instead of being adjustable may be permanently inclined at a redetermined angle. If desired, however, t e 'rings 33 at both ends may be adjusted in exactly the same rain l eem/is naaiiekffirt. feipfeaiiofil'lef :pietanze 18.1forces'loil,.throughthe channels 18a and 1,119?, thusf eleiently lubricating :thea joints at the ends of the connecting'` reds; L: -f

-: .The angular osition -'ofl the; socket the; universal yjointbetween the shaft 'and' the socket ring, and the' suddenA change of conditions whenevera cylinder -port Acomes into or .out of' communication withfamid-plate port; are three factors which causevolumetricvvariations 1nthe combined actlqns of the. pistons:7 and therefore certain yvibrations or pulsations inthe action of the mecha-nism; A Tesecure :a more umform'drivmg action,I1may, asshown inJ Fig. 4, space the cylinder ports' l16 vunevenly. This arrange# ment isfbasedfon "the fact that the inst-antof cut-off for each?? cylinder is' not `coinci`dent y. WithQthe en dof thestroke :of the respective piston'. The same result may yb e'fobtained inother Ways .Thus in Fig. 6 I have shown `theemp'loyment of cylinders lof diflerent sizes.' These-'cylinders' are shown evenly kspaced at'lanianglegof 40' degrees from each other. It'willbe noticed that those cylinders which are at thesame distance froml the median 1 line f drawn through the cylinder shown at th'etop" of Fig. 6,l are of thesame size. The .two 'fea.tures, viz. varying the' size vof the cylinders "and Spacing Lthe cylin-I der ports un'evenly,` may be used together,as shown in Fig;- 6.vv Another way which may beemployed in conjunction with the uneven spacing Vof the cylinderzports r without, is illustrated in Fig. 7 andconsists `oi spacing the cylinders` unevenly, as exemplifedby the rangle..measurements g1ven` in said ligure.,

Of course, I vmight also combinethisuneven spacing of the cylinders with thevariation-l in the size ofthe cylinders shown in Fig. 6.'

The same variation in the `spacing of the individual membersrmay be` applied to thel sockets of the socket. ring, that is, the sockets of said ring insteadl of being evenly'spa'ced,;

as in. Fig. 2, maybe spaced unevenly inthe same mannerv as indicated for the cylinders in Fig. 7.

In Fig. 8, I have shown a still further eX- pedient awhich consists in 'arranging the sockets of the socket ring at differentdis tances from'the center" of they ring. Thus the lupper socket-in Fig. 8 and-thetwo'at the botf toniare farthest away from thecentenwhile -the-other socketsvare lat varying VdistancesV but Whatever expedient is employed the v-i.cylinders, their ports',or lin -the sockets of the socket rings, .the arrangement would always be symmetrical '-to a certain median line', 'that yis, the sockets, ports 'or cylinders which `"o`ct .'-cupy thesame' relation-to such median' line 'would be alike. Throughthese meansI'am enabled to make: the necessary correction for the somewhat-irregular pumping action` of the pistons due to the universal"joint-'action between the shaft and the-socket ring and to the-angular tilting 'of' the socket vringg'thus I secure a much more uniform action than could be obtamed '1f all the parts were varranged ateven `distances and made ofthe same size.

In 'order to secure a replenishingofv the cylinders-'in case there should-'be any leakage, I have vprovided a channel 47 leading from oneofthe mid-plateports to"a"cham 'i Aber 50 which communicates with the lower part of the f casing by' means of ay port 51. The outerend of the chamber 50 4is normally closed loya plu 52; saidchamber also con-` tains a seat 49 or a check valve'll-S lopening toward them'idipl-ate. This channel 47`is connected with that mid-plate port which is on the suction lside of the driving'member, that is, the side on-whichthe pistons 1 8 move away-from the mid-plate. y As soon as the contents of the cylinders have diminished through leakage, the suction within the port Qc will cause-'the check valve 48 to open, thus admitting the necessary additional supply of oil to the cylinders. E

Then the Asame port of the mid-plate, for instance the port 2c, lis always the suction port, it. will be sufficient to'have only one check valve arrangement as shown in Fig. l5. If, however, the yarrangement vis reversible,

as it may -be in some cases, so that sometimes the port'2c ywould be the suction port and at other times `the port 2d, then the arrangement of the check-Valve and channels would have `to be duplicated for each of the ports.`

Insomecases" it is desirable Ito make the driving section different from the driven sec tion by giving the cylinders and pistons of one section a greater diameter than those of the other sect-ion. `When the two sections are alike, 'and the socket rings of both are. in- Aclinedwal't'the' Same angle,ithe two-sections willfrotate at the same speed'. Ifvhowever, the' cylinders and pistons of the driven secv `tion he made oa larger diameter. than those f 'i of the ydriving section," then, with the .socket rings of both sections standing at tlie.-sa1ne anglefthe .driven section will rotate k[more 'slowly than the driving section, or' whatmay .f

fbe termedfalgearing downglf.islebtained 'diameter th'an those" of driven, section.

This arrangement is shownin Figui?.

The mechanism described hereln comprises two sections, one of which may be de scribed-as a pump and the other as a motor driven by the Huid which the pum propels. Each of the sections is reversible in function, that is, it may either be used as a pump, to set a fluidin motion, or it may be driven by a fluid under pressure, and thus used as a motor. Of course, each section Vis fully 'o erative by itself. Thus I might remove a l the parts shovan'on the right of the inidplate, and use the remaining apparatus as a pump, one of the ports, say 2, forming the suction port and the other, 2d, the delivery port; or the same apparatus might serve as a motor, by admitting a duid under pressure. through one of the ports of the mid-plate `the rotary cylinder barrel arranged in engagement with said" member, the cylinders being evenly s aced andhaving unevenly spaced ports a apted to register with thosey of the stationary member, istons arranged to reciprocate in said cylin ers, and a rotary inclined member connected with said pistons.`

2. The combination of the stationary member having ports for the passage of the duid, the rotary cylinder barrels arran ed in engagement With those surfaces of t e stationary member at which the ports terminate, the cylinders of the same barrel being evenly spaced and having unevenly spaced ports adapted to register With those of the stationary member, istons arranged to reciprocate in said cylin ers, a rotary adjustable tilting rin connected with the lstons of one barrel, an a rotatable inclined member connected with the pistons of the other barrel.v

3. The combination ofthe stationary member having ports for the passage of the fluid, the rotary cylinder barrel arranged in engagement with said member, thecylinders of said barrel having unevenly `s aced ports adapted to register with those o the stationary member, pistons in said cylinders, and'a rotary inclined member connected. with said pistons. l v A 4. The combination of the stationary member having ports forthe passage of the duid, the rotary cylinder barrels arranged in engagement with those surfaces of the station-I ary member at which the ports terminate, the cylinders of said barrels having unevenly spaced ports adapted to register Withv those rotatable" inclined member connected of the statinary member, pistons in said cyl'- inders, a rotary adjustable-tilting ring. connected `vvitli'the pistons of one barreL'and la 4wit the pistons ofthe other barrel.. i

5. The combinationfof the stationary mem bei' having ports for the passage of the duid, the rotary cylinder barrel arranged an eng vement with said member, the cylinders of said barrel being of differentl diameters and having-ports adapted to register with those of said stationary member, pistons in said cylinders, and a rotary inclined member connected with-said pistons.

6. The combination of the stationary member having ports for the passage of thel fiuid, ,the rotary cylinder barrels arranged Ain engagement with those surfaces of the stationary member at which the ports terminate, the cylinders of the same barrel being of different sizes and having ports adapte to register with those of the stationary member, pistons in .said cylinders a rotary adjustable tilting ring connecte lwith the pistons of one barrel, anda rotatable inclined member connected with the pistons ofv the other barrel.

7. The combination ofthe stationary member having ports for the passage of the fluid, the rotary cylinder barrel arranged in engagement with. said member, pistonsin said cylinders, a rotary inclined member having a socket ring the sockets of which4 `are at different distances from the center,

and connecting rods extendingy from the sockets to the pistons.

8. The combination of the stationary mem'- ber having ports for ythe passage of the fluid,lthe rotary cylinder barrel arranged in engagement with saidmember, istons in said cylinders, a rotary incline member having a socket' ring the sockets of which "are at different distances from the center those sockets which are at the same distance from-a median line being also at the same distance from the center, andv cbonnecting rods extending from the sockets to thepistons.

9. The combination of the stationary member having ports for the passage of the fluid, the rotary barrel 'arranged 1n engage` ment with saidmember and haying cylinders with ports-'adapted to register with those of said member, said ports being spaced unevenl *and the portsbelonging to cylinders w ich occii tion to a certain median ineybeing at even 4 distances frm' said line, pistons in said cylinders,l and a rotary-inc nected with'said.pistons.-

v10. The combination ofthe stationary member having ports for the'passageoi the fluid, the rotarycylinder barrel'arranged engagement with said member, the c linders of said barrel beingfof 'different diameters ined member con the same lrelav In testimony whereof, I havo he-rounto signed my name in the presence oftwo sub# scribing Witnesses.

and having ports adapted to -register' With those of said .tationary member, those cyl-- inders which are at thesame distance "from zy certain `median line being of the-samev HARVEY D. WILLIAMS. diameter,.pistonsl in said cylinders, and a. .Witncsseszy rotary inclined member connected With said I WM. K. PI.l SCHOFIELD,

` A. HYDE.

pistons. 

